


Crumbling Walls

by bamby0304



Category: The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Angst, Explicit Language, F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-04
Updated: 2018-12-04
Packaged: 2019-09-06 23:51:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16842937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bamby0304/pseuds/bamby0304
Summary: You never thought something as simple as spending a cold night in an abandoned cabin could change your life…





	Crumbling Walls

**_Warnings_ ** **: Explicit language. Spoilers for season 8. Maybe some angst. Definitely some fluff.**

**Bamby**

You were camped out with Daryl. The two of you had volunteered to go out scavenging for everyone back at the Hilltop seeing as supplies were getting low. But, truth be told, you had really offered to go just to get out of there.

Losing Carl had hurt everyone, and you were feeling it. There was nothing wrong with that, of course. You just… in a world where you were fighting for your life and fighting off the dead, you really didn’t need any more drama or heartache.

So, you’d told Maggie you were going to be gone for a few days, and headed off.

You didn’t make it out of the gates before Daryl was walking beside you, his strides meeting yours. Neither of you said the words, you understood the silence that fell between you. He didn’t want you going off alone.

There were dangers everywhere. Not only were the dead a constant problem, but people had proved t be just as bad. Your people had pissed Negan and his Saviours off. You’d all screwed them after they’d screwed you, after you’d screwed them because they’d screwed other people. It was an endless cycle of screwing, and now you were fucked.

War was coming. Hell, war was here.

But thoughts of all that drifted off while you were out scavenging. The fact Daryl was with you helped. He could be quite calm at times. The kind of man that had an on and off switch with no in between. When he was quiet, like this, it was nice. You sunk into it and melted. You loved the peace, the gentle silence that allowed you to listen to the woods and everything that surrounded you.

It also reminded you that at one point you had crushed on Daryl like a school girl.

Time had passed and things had changed. Daryl was no less of a man than before, he hadn’t done anything to change your thoughts or feeling, you just didn’t have time to fantasise over the idea of being with someone.

People die every day, gruesomely and horribly. The world had turned harsh and so people had to toughen up. Letting other in, letting people in, was dangerous and reckless and you honestly didn’t want to risk it.

Looking over at Daryl, you assumed he was the same. While he was part of the family and cared for and about everyone, you never really saw him get too close. You never saw him let his walls down completely, and you completely understood.

As you sat in front of the small fire he’d started earlier, thoughts wandering, you were pulled back to Earth by the sound of movement in the distance.

Your head snapped in the direction of the noise. “Did you hear that?”

Daryl shifted, moving to a crouching position as he waited and listened. There was a pause before he grunted. “Shouldn’t be out in the open like this,” he noted.

“I saw a cabin back that way.” You gestured behind you.

With a short nod, he stood and started gathering his things. You didn’t need directions or words. Neither of you broke the silence as you collected your stuff, killed the flames of your small fire and then set off towards the cabin.

It didn’t take long before you found it. Earlier, when you came across the tiny wooden home, you hadn’t bothered looking inside. There had been three walkers shuffling along, and it had seemed like too much work when the day was almost over. You’d planned on coming back and checking the place out tomorrow. But now as you neared the door you could see the place was vacant of both the dead and the living.

Taking the lead, Daryl held his crossbow in front of him as he slowly crept through the front door. While the place appeared to be empty, neither of you were willing to risk assuming that was the case.

You split up, both of you trusting the other’s ability to search the place alone. If someone was there, if you did bump into trouble, you knew all it would take was a call for help before Daryl would come running.

Just as you thought, though, the place was void of any other soul. Nothing alive or undead had made the place home, so you and Daryl saw no reason why you shouldn’t stay. For the night or for more, it didn’t matter. The cabin had four walls and a roof, and there were still more places you could scavenge not too far away. If you wanted, you could camp out here for a few days and then head back to the others.

Coming back to the front room, you noticed the mattress in the corner. It wasn’t the best looking thing, but it wasn’t the worst you’d seen over the years. Throw a blanket over it and you’d be set. There was just one problem…

“There’s only one bed,” you noted, looking up at Daryl as he stood by the front window, peeking out through the ripped and rotting curtains.

He simply shrugged. “I’ll take the floor.”

You could have argued, you could have suggested the two fo you take turns keeping watch and take turns sleeping, but you knew there was no point. The place was locked down, nothing was getting in, there was no need for either of you not to sleep. You could insist until your face turned blue, but there was no way Daryl was taking the mattress from you.

Sighing, you pulled a thin blanket from one of your bags and laid it out over the mattress before setting yourself on top of it. Curling into a ball and closing your eyes, you waited for sleep to come.

It didn’t.

Usually it took you awhile to get to sleep, but tonight was taking longer. You tossed and turned a little until Daryl settled in for the night. Not wanting to disturb him, you stayed still and tried counting sheep, but found it did nothing.

The chill that ran through the cabin had you shivering, and before you knew it, your teeth were clattering together.

“Are you cold?” Daryl’s voice called through the dark.

Hesitating for a brief moment, wondering if you should just pretend to be asleep, you eventually gave in and sighed. “I’m freezing.”

There was the sound of movement before you felt the mattress dip a little. Stunned into silence but understanding, you shifted so he could fit beside you comfortably. He didn’t say anything, simple laid down close to you, the warmth of his body radiating onto your cold skin.

Moments passed, and while he was warming you slightly it still wasn’t enough to keep you from shivering.

“Can I touch you?” he asked out of nowhere, causing you to freeze. “It’ll help keep you warm,” he explained with his signature Daryl grunt.

Thankfully there was enough light streaming in through the window, because if there hadn’t been he wouldn’t have seen the simple nod you gave in response.

His hand pulled at your waist, dragging you closer to him as he could wrap his arms around you. In an instant you felt a thousand times warmer. His body heat melted into you, and it wasn’t long before you felt yourself drifting off to sleep in his arms.

But before you did, before you could allow yourself to dream of the man in your arms, you wanted to ask him something. You couldn’t stay here all night, in such an intimate position, without asking. Sure, it could make things weird, it could ruin the whole night, it could make him pull away and never speak to you again… but in this world your opportunities are limited, and you didn’t want to waste this moment.

“Can I kiss you right now?”

No words followed yours, and his body gave nothing away. He didn’t react in the slightest, which both disappointed and enthralled you. Seconds passed and turned to minutes before you finally got an answer.

Daryl, without breaking the silence that had fallen, leaned in and pressed his lips to yours in a kiss that warmed you more than his embrace could. It was then you felt your walls and his walls crumbling as you took a chance and let each other in.

**Bamby**


End file.
